New downtown fusion restaurant to seat nearly 1,000 patrons

A little piece of Vietnam has made its way to downtown Salt Lake City in the form of Sapa, an Asian-fusion restaurant that will be housed in three authentic wooden structures brought from Vietnam to the United States by restaurant owner Mai Nguyen and her husband, Sean Dang. The eatery is slated to open in May or June.

Nguyen found the wooden stilt houses that make up the restaurant's courtyard in the mountains of Vietnam, had them disassembled, transported and then reassembled at 722 S. State Street. Two of the buildings still have the original food-dye paint, Nguyen said, and all three have been reinforced to meet city building codes.

"It's like a puzzle. It's like thousands of little pieces. It was tough for us to do it. It took us forever," Nguyen said of reassembling the houses. "But I wanted to keep the authenticity of the building."

The restaurant exterior also includes a traditional wooden gate.

The interior includes seating for between 130 and 140 patrons, and the garden courtyard area that can accommodate an additional 300 people. In approximately two months, construction will begin on a second phase, a 6,000 square foot building that can hold 400 people for receptions and other special events. The two buildings will have separate outdoor entrances, but will be connected inside through the kitchen.